Optimus (Tesla Bot)

History

Tesla's humanoid robot, Optimus, also known as Tesla Bot, was first announced at the company's Artificial Intelligence (AI) Day event in August 2021. Elon Musk, Tesla's CEO, described Optimus as a general-purpose robotic assistant designed to perform tasks that are "dangerous, repetitive, and boring" for humans. He expressed high hopes for the project, suggesting that Optimus could eventually become "more significant" than Tesla's vehicle business.

The robot relies on advanced AI systems similar to those used in Tesla's autonomous vehicles, including machine learning algorithms for real-time vision, object recognition, and navigation. "It's just a robot with arms and legs instead of a robot with wheels," Musk said of Optimus at a 2024 event. "Everything we've developed for our cars — the batteries, power electronics, advanced motors, gearboxes, the software, AI inference computer — it all actually applies to a humanoid robot."

The development of Optimus saw significant milestones in 2022. In April 2022, a display for the robot was featured at the Tesla Giga Texas manufacturing facility during the Cyber Rodeo event. Musk expressed optimism about having the robot production-ready by 2023, claiming that Optimus would be capable of performing any task that humans prefer not to do.

In September 2022, at Tesla's second AI Day event, the company finally showcased semi-functional prototypes of Optimus, with one version walking on stage and another, more refined prototype demonstrating arm and leg movements. The demonstrations were met with mixed reactions from the media and experts, with some praising the rapid progress made by Tesla engineers while others expressing skepticism about the robot's capabilities in comparison to past and current humanoid projects.

The progress continued into 2023, with Tesla releasing a video in September showing Optimus performing new tasks like sorting colored blocks and maintaining a yoga pose. In December 2023, Tesla unveiled the Generation 2 Optimus, which featured a slimmer design, improved hands, and enhanced movements. While the robot was able to perform several tasks fully autonomously, others required teleoperation.

In 2024, a video released in May showed the robot performing various jobs at a Tesla factory. Optimus Gen 2 robots were seen navigating obstacles and human workers, and handling objects like battery cells on its own. Tesla said the robot's AI system enables learning and adaptation, improving performance and versatility over time. The company is not alone in exploring the latest advances in generative AI. Other robotics companies are also betting on machine learning to train their humanoid robots for jobs in factories and warehouses.

In October 2024, Optimus made an appearance at Tesla's We, Robot event. "Speaking of robots," Musk told the crowd as half a dozen robots appeared, walking past attendees. There were also Optimus robots bartending, and a group on a stage performing a synchronized dance. Musk predicted that Optimus could one day cost "less than a car" if produced at scale. "You should be able to buy an Optimus robot for I think probably 20,000 to 30,000 dollars."

Still at the We, Robot event, Tesla showed a video of Optimus in a home, bringing a package inside, unloading groceries from a car, watering plants, and even playing a board game with a family. "I think this will be the biggest product ever of any kind," Musk said, adding, "Everyone's going to want their Optimus buddy."